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Understanding cardiovascular
diseases
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Contents
Introduction
Learning Outcomes
1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
A simple introduction
Broad defintions of cardiovascular diseases
There's a lot of it about: the global picture of cardiovascular diseases
Decline of cardiovascular diseases in Western society?
Economic impact of cardiovascular diseases
2 Studying cardiovascular diseases
2.1 Using medical terminology: building a glossary
3 Risk factors
5
6
7
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9
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3.1 Lifestyle choices
3.2 Diabetes as a risk factor
18
20
4 Prevention is better than cure
23
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
Introduction
The National Service Framework
Education, education, education
Obesity and cardiovascular diseases
What can individuals do?
A balanced diet
Special circumstances?
5 Early warning signs
6 When things go wrong
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
7 Immediate treatment of cardiovascular diseases
8 Long-term treatment, and living with cardiovascular diseases
8.1
8.2
8.3
8.4
8.5
Interventions
Secondary prevention using drugs
Issues with medications
When surgery is required
How things change
9 Conclusion
10 Test your knowledge
11 Additional resources
Keep on learning
References
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Acknowledgements
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Introduction
Introduction
You may be studying this course because you – or a member of your family or a friend –
have been personally affected by cardiovascular diseases in some way. You may be
professionally involved in looking after people with one of these diseases. Perhaps you
are interested in health issues in general. Whatever your motivation or underlying reasons
for studying this course, you will gain valuable insights into the extent of cardiovascular
diseases and their treatment in the early twenty-first century. What you learn about
avoiding or delaying cardiovascular diseases may also be incorporated into your own
lifestyle for a healthier future for you and your family.
This course provides an introductory overview of some of the diseases of the heart and
circulation (the cardiovascular system) and their medical management. This should
help you get used to medical terminology and provide an introduction to the anatomy and
physiology of the cardiovascular system.
This OpenLearn course provides a sample of Level 1 study in Science.
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Learning Outcomes
After studying this course, you should be able to:
l
describe, in general terms, the different types of cardiovascular diseases, making clear the difference between
the terms cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and coronary heart disease (CHD)
l
identify different areas of the body likely to be affected by cardiovascular diseases
l
locate information on the internet, and understand and interpret data on disease occurrence
l
recognise the importance of historical and geographical factors in the changing profile of cardiovascular disease
incidence worldwide
l
identify and list a number of risk factors that contribute to the development of cardiovascular diseases.
1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
1.1 A simple introduction
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) is a ‘catch all’ phrase used to describe a variety of
diseases of the heart and blood circulatory system. The main types of CVD are listed in
Table 1, along with commonly used alternative descriptions. (Also see Box 1.) In Figure 1,
CVDs are indicated in association with the particular body area where they mainly occur. It
is useful to become more familiar with some of the more common terms that you will be
encountering and their general definitions. To help you with any new medical terms, this
course has an accompanying glossary which contains definitions for all of the words
printed in bold in the text. Be sure to refer to it as you work your way through the course,
when you come across new or unfamiliar terms.
Table 1 The major types of cardiovascular diseases, together
with acronyms and/or commonly used alternative names
Disease
Abbreviations and alternative names
cardiovascular diseases
CVDs
angina pectoris
angina, chest pain
arrhythmia
irregular heart beat
atherosclerosis
hardened arteries, furred up arteries
congenital defects
birth heart/valve defects
coronary heart disease
CHD, heart disease
heart failure
acute or chronic heart failure, congestive heart failure
hypertension
elevated or high blood pressure
ischaemia
ischæmia, ischemia
myocardial infarction
MI
stroke
cerebrovascular disease
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
Figure 1 Outline of the human body indicating the particular body area generally
associated with the various cardiovascular diseases
Click to view larger PDF version of Figure 1
Box 1: CVD or CHD?
You may have heard statistics about how many people are killed by cardiovascular
diseases (CVDs): one in three people in the UK, one in four men and one in three women in
the USA, or similar such figures for elsewhere in the world. So what are CVDs and how do
they differ from heart disease or even coronary heart disease (CHD), which you will have
heard used?
Firstly, CVDs describes a number of different diseases of the heart and circulatory system,
including CHD and stroke. This is why this course refers to cardiovascular diseases in the
plural, as opposed to referring to a single disease.
So it should not be too surprising to learn that there is no simple cause of CVDs.
Reassuringly though, there are a wide range of drugs and medical procedures available for
CVD patients. There are also many contributing lifestyle factors that have been identified,
which can be modified to either reduce the risk of developing CVDs or to help those living
with it. You will learn about these throughout this course.
Occasionally in scientific literature and on the internet, the acronym CVD is also used to
describe cerebrovascular disease (stroke). Be careful when you research the subject not to
confuse this condition with cardiovascular diseases.
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
1.2 Broad defintions of cardiovascular diseases
The following are broad definitions that may be useful in familiarising yourself with the
range of CVDs and are here for you to return to at any time during the course to use as a
reminder. You will undoubtedly come across variations as you read about them on the
internet and in other texts.
Vascular refers to blood vessels (arteries, veins, and smaller vessels) and vasculature
refers to the arrangement of blood vessels within the body.
Atherosclerosis (hardened or furred-up arteries) is due to the accumulation of fatty
material within the blood vessel wall, which can lead to narrowing of the vessel and
restriction of blood flow.
Ischaemia is a restriction in the blood supply within the blood vessels, with resultant
tissue damage.
Angina pectoris describes chest pains due to ischaemia, often experienced during
exercise.
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common form of heart disease, which
involves a reduction in the blood supply to the heart muscle by narrowing or blockage of
the coronary arteries. It is often characterised by atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries,
angina pectoris and myocardial infarction, leading to acute heart failure.
Myocardial infarction (MI) occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart is cut off. If
the blood flow to the heart is not restored, that part of the heart will die, causing disability
or death. Myocardial infarction is the main cause of acute heart failure.
Heart failure is a medical condition resulting from heart disease and is often
misunderstood. It describes when the organ cannot pump efficiently and is unable to
generate blood flow sufficient to meet the demands of the body, either at rest or during
exercise. Congestive heart failure is the term generally used when there is peripheral
swelling due to fluid build-up.
Heart attack is the common name for acute heart failure, which is most often due to
myocardial infarction following blockage of a coronary artery, but which also may be
caused by other events that disturb the organised spread of electrical activity in the heart
(e.g. arrhythmia, electrocution).
Myocardial infarction, heart failure and heart attack are terms that are often used
interchangeably when they actually have different meanings.
Arrhythmia is an uncontrolled, disordered or irregular heart beat. It can be faster or
slower than normal.
Palpitations are when a distinct heart beat can be felt, and may be normal, faster or
slower than usual. This is not necessarily a problem; for example, they can be caused by
certain medications or simply by drinking too much caffeine in a short space of time!
Blood pressure is a measure of the force generated by the beating of the heart pressing
blood against the walls of the arteries as it is pumped around the body. A blood pressure
measurement shows the higher systolic pressure – when the heart contracts – and the
lower diastolic pressure – when the heart relaxes.
Normal adult blood pressure should be less than about 140/90 mmHg (systolic/diastolic),
as in the first pale pink zone in the bottom left-hand corner of Figure 2. If your blood
pressure is consistently measured by medical staff as over 140/90 mmHg (the pink central
zone or red outer zone of Figure 2), or over 140/80 mmHg if you have diabetes, you will be
considered to have elevated or high blood pressure, known as hypertension.
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
Consistently high blood pressure is a risk factor for many cardiovascular diseases. The
excess pressure can damage the lining of an artery, allowing blood clots to form and
cause blockages.
Figure 2 The relationship between systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The zones of
blood pressure measurement indicate whether the readings are generally normal or
elevated. Health care professionals also consider other symptoms and illnesses an
individual has when determining whether medical treatment is needed
Strokes are caused by either blocked or burst blood vessels in the brain. By reducing
high blood pressure to within the normal range, nearly half of all strokes can be prevented.
Strokes are not covered in this course in detail – they vary according to the area of brain
affected and there is not the space to cover the required brain anatomy or neuroscience.
Strokes can kill or cause major disability, although full recovery is possible after a minor
stroke.
Other rarer forms of heart disease are those that some people may be born with, known
as congenital heart defects. Examples include problems with the heart valves or heart
beat rhythm, and these are more likely to be encountered in younger people. They can
cause long-term problems and even death (if undiagnosed) for people with these
conditions. Sometimes you hear news stories about previously healthy children or young
adults dying suddenly, especially following strenuous sports activities such as football
matches (see Box 2).
Box 2: Sudden heart death in the young
SADS is another acronym that is used interchangeably, but this time for two descriptions of
the same condition: Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome and Sudden Adult Death
Syndrome. The first is more accurate because SADS can affect children too.
There are a number of different causes of sudden heart death in young people, but
sometimes no cause is found when a young person dies. This happens in about 1 in 20
cases in the UK (up to 500 per year). It is thought that a proportion of cases may be caused
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
by a fast, uncontrolled heart beat (arrhythmia). One identified arrhythmia has been called
long QT syndrome, which describes a lengthening of the time it takes the heart's electrical
system to recharge, leaving the individual susceptible to an abnormal heart beat rhythm.
If the condition is diagnosed in time, a miniature defibrillator (to restart the heart) may be
fitted or drugs can be taken (for the rest of the individual's life) to slow down the heart rate.
Without treatment, the brain becomes deprived of oxygen, causing fainting – or, rarely,
collapse and death.
As long QT syndrome can be genetically inherited and may be brought on by exercise, it
has been suggested that all young athletes should be screened for the condition (Cardiac
Risk in the Young, 2003).
1.3 There's a lot of it about: the global picture of
cardiovascular diseases
1.3.1 Who is affected by cardiovascular diseases?
Cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of premature death (before the age of 75) in
the UK, across Europe and the USA – indeed, across many parts of the world (Figures 3
and 4). One third of global deaths in 2002 were from cardiovascular diseases: 16.7 million
people (World Health Organization (WHO) figures: Mackay and Mensah, 2004; see
Figure 3). However, the burden is not shared equally between the developed and
developing world, or even within European states, as you will see in the next section.
Figure 3 Pie chart showing the proportion of global deaths from various cardiovascular
diseases in 2002
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
Figure 4 The number of deaths per year throughout the world for different types of
cardiovascular diseases subdivided by age into different groups. As you can see, in early
adulthood coronary heart disease and stroke become the common causes of
cardiovascular deaths for large numbers of people
Activity 1: Interpreting coronary heart disease deaths from a world
distribution map
0 10
Using Figure 5, find three countries with the highest numbers of deaths from coronary
heart disease (more than 500 000) and then three countries with the lowest numbers
(fewer than 1000; exclude the no data countries).
Look at your own country and decide whether it has a high or low occurrence of
coronary heart disease.
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
Figure 5 Coronary heart disease knows no borders: a map of the world showing
numbers of deaths from coronary heart disease in 2002
Click here to view larger PDF version of Figure 5
You should be aware that the number of deaths from coronary heart disease in 2002
varied greatly between different countries. There are numerous reasons for these
differences and you will start to learn about some of these in the following sections.
1.4 Decline of cardiovascular diseases in Western
society?
Cardiovascular diseases may be the main cause of death across most of the world, but
the mortality (death) rates have actually been declining since the 1970s in most
industrialised countries.
‘…CHD mortality decreased by more than 50% between 1981 and 2000 in
England and Wales. Approximately 40% of the UK decrease was attributable to
the combined effects of modern cardiological treatments and almost 60% to [a]
reduction in major risk factors, particularly smoking. This is consistent with the
majority of other studies in the United States, Europe, Scotland and New
Zealand.’
(Unal et al., 2004)
For the USA, Figure 6 shows the decline in heart attacks in its population over 25 years
to 2005. The reasons for all these declines are not straightforward, but may be due to
improved prevention, diagnosis and treatment. These include:
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
l
changes in cardiovascular risk factors, such as reduced smoking in adults, lower
blood pressure and lower blood cholesterol levels
l
development and access to medical treatments, such as thrombolysis, aspirin and
statins, and surgical treatments, such as coronary artery bypass surgery and
angioplasty to widen blocked blood vessels.
Figure 6 The numbers of heart attacks and surgical procedures (angioplasty and coronary
bypass) per 10 000 of the population in the USA between 1980 and 2005 (Swanton and
Frost, 2007)
SAQ 1
Question: From Figure 6, you will see that, in 1990, 11 people per 10 000 of
the population in the USA had angioplasty surgery. By 1995, this had
increased to 17 people per 10 000. What was the figure in 2000?
Answer
About 37 people per 10 000 of the population had angioplasty surgery in 2000.
Although this decline in cardiovascular disease deaths sounds encouraging, the same
researchers from the above quoted study also identified some adverse trends which
would be expected to lead to more cardiovascular diseases in the future:
The adverse trends in obesity, diabetes, and physical inactivity together
contributed ~8000 additional deaths in 2000. These canceled out 2 decades of
improvement in cholesterol. Furthermore, continuing deteriorations are
expected.
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
(Unal et al., 2004)
The 2005 statistics confirm that cardiovascular disease rates are falling in most northern,
southern and western European countries, but the decline is slower or there is even an
increase in central and eastern European countries (see Figure 7; Petersen et al., 2006).
It is anticipated that over 80 per cent of the future increases in coronary heart disease will
be in developing countries (Mackay and Mensah, 2004). The death rate from coronary
heart disease is not falling so fast in South Asian people in the UK as in the rest of the UK
population (Lip et al., 2007). So although many improvements have been made to the
diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases, there is no time to be
complacent: there are also other socioeconomic and risk factors at work that can just as
easily reverse these encouraging declines.
Figure 7 The percentage change in coronary heart disease death rates in men and
women aged 35 to 74 over a 10-year period (1988–1998) in selected countries
How confident can you be that statements of medical statistics are true – for example,
‘approximately 43% (43 men in every 100) of deaths in men in Europe are due to
cardiovascular diseases'? What exactly do such statements mean? Identifying the cause
of death is not an exact science, and medical practitioners may make a mistake.
Moreover, there may be a greater tendency in some countries than others to identify the
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1 What are cardiovascular diseases?
cause of death as a cardiovascular disease. Such effects can mask, accentuate or
confuse genuine differences between countries in the occurrence of cardiovascular
diseases. Often, such statements are more informative when a range is given, such as
‘30–50% of deaths in men are caused by cardiovascular diseases’. Such ranges may
relate to true differences between countries, as well as to accuracy or bias in the
diagnosis. It is important to look carefully at the meaning of such general statements to
establish where and when they may be applicable.
Even given perfect diagnosis or data, statements on disease occurrence still require
careful analysis if they are based on a sample of the whole population. For example, if a
statement is made concerning smokers and is based on the incidence of cardiovascular
diseases in a sample of 1000 smokers, can you be sure that the results seen with the
sample of 1000 smokers apply to the whole population of smokers? This is where
statistical methods are used which aim to show whether a result seen in a study is truly
applicable to the population as a whole. These methods frequently generate a value
called P (the P-value, a probability), which indicates how likely the result is to be wrong.
For example, if you read that a study has shown that P < 0.01 (probability P less than
0.01), it shows that in more than 99 per cent of cases the results from the sample indicate
what is happening in the wider population. The probability that the conclusions of the
study do not apply – that is, they are incorrect for the population as a whole – is less than
1 per cent.
1.5 Economic impact of cardiovascular diseases
The economic costs of cardiovascular diseases are wide-ranging and increasing. There
are costs to the individual and their family, to the government (especially if medical care is
state-funded) and to the country's economy if time is lost from work. The costs of
cardiovascular diseases within the European Union in 2005 are estimated to be €169
billion (169 thousand million) per year. Over two thirds of the costs are direct health care
costs (Petersen et al., 2006).
The costs of prescribing cardiovascular drugs for 2002 in England were £1.74 billion
(Evans, 2004). That was about one quarter of the total prescribing costs (£1.74 billion out
of £6.84 billion). In the UK, prescribing costs in relation to the prevention of coronary heart
diseases are increasing nationally, with significant cost pressures related to implementation of the National Service Framework for preventing coronary heart disease (see
Section 4.1; Evans, 2004).
In Section 1.3 you were introduced to the global cost of cardiovascular diseases in terms
of lives lost to these conditions. However, many people are also living with cardiovascular
diseases or disabled in some way due to the debilitating effects of some of these
conditions.
The World Health Organization (WHO) produces world data tables detailing, by country,
the total population and the deaths from heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases
(plus some major risk factors) (WHO, 2006). There are also figures for the ‘healthy years
of life lost’ (DALYS: disability-adjusted life years), and these give an indication of the
disease burden within the population.
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2 Studying cardiovascular diseases
Activity 2: Using the world data tables for cardiovascular diseases
0 20
Look at the world data tables for 2002 produced by WHO (2006). Find the row of data
for the UK, which had a population of roughly 60 million in 2002. You can calculate the
actual number of healthy years of life lost due to coronary heart disease for the UK
(DALYS lost) in 2002 as being:
Pick another country with a similar population – for example, Thailand (62 million),
Turkey (70 million), France (60 million) or Italy (57 million) – and repeat the above
calculation using the data for that country. Compare the answer you get with the
answer for the UK.
If you haven't done so already, take a look at the data from your own country.
This activity should have exercised your mathematical skills and showed the number
of healthy years lost due to the development of coronary heart disease in different
countries. The differences observed between countries with similar-sized populations
should stimulate you to think about the wider implications on, for example, their health
services and economies.
2 Studying cardiovascular diseases
2.1 Using medical terminology: building a glossary
As you start studying a medical subject, it is useful to be familiar with the sort of
terminology you will come across. Often there are similar-sounding terms with different
meanings, e.g. hypo and hyper. There is medical jargon that needs deciphering,
e.g. hypertension means high blood pressure. Likewise, the same acronyms can be used
for different things, which can cause frustration (e.g. the two different uses of the acronym
CVD – see Box 1 for a reminder). To help you with the medical terminology, this course
contains an accompanying glossary. Be sure to refer to it when you come across new or
unfamiliar terms or when you need to revise them.
Many medical, scientific and technical terms are derived from other languages, such as
Greek, Latin, Sanskrit and German. Understanding specialised terms can be made much
easier with some knowledge of how complex words are made up of simpler ones. The
study of the origins of words is called etymology; etymologies, while not being definitions,
are interesting demonstrations of how our words have formed from other words and why
the original words were chosen. For example, ‘cardiomyopathy’ breaks down into ‘cardio’
(heart), ‘-myo-’(muscle) and ‘-pathy’ (disease).
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3 Risk factors
Activity 3: Using the course glossary
0 20
Pick five unfamiliar words from the following list and look them up in the course
glossary: angina pectoris, arrhythmia, bradycardia, cardiology, electrocardiogram,
epidemiology, ischaemia, myocardium, pulmonary, tachycardia, thrombosis.
Use the glossary to find out what the difference is between the two (very similar) words
atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis.
3 Risk factors
3.1 Lifestyle choices
Health is generally considered to be the absence of disease. However, the absence of
any symptoms of disease may cause us to mistakenly believe we are healthy. We can't
see inside our arteries to know how blocked up they are with fatty deposits without
specialised equipment, but that doesn't mean it isn't gradually happening.
You may consider that your heart is healthy. What are your chances, as a member of the
general population, of developing cardiovascular diseases now, next year or in 20 years'
time? What are your risk factors for developing a heart problem in the future, and what
can you do to minimise them? These appear to be simple questions, but what is the
difference between chance and risk?
Chance is the likelihood of something happening (or not happening) randomly. It is not
something that can be controlled. What determines who will succumb to cardiovascular
diseases within the population has been studied scientifically. Rather than being just down
to chance, it may be described in terms of risk factors.
Risk has a connotation of something bad possibly (but not definitely) happening.
Everyone has an absolute risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, or any other
disease over their lifetime. We can express an individual's risk in a variety of ways: a 1 in
10 risk can also be written as a 10 per cent risk or as a risk of 0.1. The absolute risks for
men and women in Europe are actually much higher; approximately 43 per cent of deaths
in men and 55 per cent of deaths in women in Europe are due to cardiovascular diseases
(Petersen et al., 2006).
There are some activities and lifestyle choices that increase an individual's risk of
disease. These can also be calculated and combined with their absolute risk. An
assessment of relative risk in epidemiology (the study of the distribution of diseases in
populations and their causes) looks at, for example, the risk of cardiovascular diseases
occurring in smokers relative to the risk of cardiovascular diseases occurring in nonsmokers, comparing two probabilities. There is no assessment of how bad the
cardiovascular diseases are or even if smoking is the cause, but for whatever reasons, the
risk of cardiovascular diseases in smokers is found to be greater than in non-smokers. To
summarise, chance relates to the whole population and the likelihood of developing
cardiovascular diseases, but risk can be specifically calculated for a subset of the
population, such as smokers or those with pre-existing diabetes.
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3 Risk factors
There are many scientific studies that have looked at a whole host of lifestyle risk factors
for cardiovascular diseases, such as smoking, raised blood cholesterol and elevated
blood pressure. (Others are listed in Table 2.) Unlike chance, once identified, a modifiable
risk factor can be acted upon to reduce its possible negative effect on health or future
health, hence reducing the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. Many of these
factors can also be termed modifiable risk factors because they can be changed through
personal choice (but often not without considerable effort!).
Table 2 Cardiovascular risk factors can be separated into three broad
categories: biological risk factors that are non-modifiable; biological risk
factors that are modifiable by treatment or altered lifestyle; and lifestyle
factors that are modifiable
Biological risk factors:
non-modifiable
Biological risk factors: modifiable by
treatment or altered lifestyle
Lifestyle risk
factors: modifiable
age (increasing)
high blood cholesterol
smoking
male
high blood pressure (hypertension)
diet (unhealthy or
unbalanced)
family history (genetic)
overweight and obesity
inactivity (sedentary
lifestyle)
race/ethnicity
diabetes (Type 2)
excessive alcohol
consumption
diabetes (Type 1)
psychosocial factors, e.g. stress,
depression, anger
You read about both decreasing and increasing rates of cardiovascular diseases in
Section 1. Even though some major risk factors have been identified from studies that
date back to the 1940s, and although some reductions in cardiovascular diseases have
been achieved based on these investigations, changes in society and global factors since
then have led to the emergence of new or more prevalent risk factors. Why is it that
cardiovascular diseases are expected to continue increasing throughout certain areas of
the world? The habits or ‘lifestyle risk factors’ of people and populations have changed
over recent years, often described as becoming more ‘Westernised’. The trend has been
towards the consumption of more energy-dense but nutrient-poor food, such as saturated
fats and trans fatty acids (see Section 3.2.1 later), salt and refined carbohydrates, and a
correspondingly lower consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables. At the same time, many
societies have reduced their physical activity, perhaps due to more time spent watching
television, playing computer games and other sedentary activities, rather than on physical
or outdoor activities. At the same time, there has been more travel taking place in cars
and other motorised vehicles rather than by bicycle or walking.
There are also some biological risk factors that are not modifiable (Table 2). These include
gender, increasing age, any genetic disorders and some diseases, e.g. Type 1 diabetes
(see Section 3.2). Type 2 diabetes and its precursor, insulin resistance, can be modified to
some extent during their early stages.
Some of the modifiable risk factors could fall equally well into the biological or lifestyle risk
category, especially if they have arisen as a result of lifestyle. Examples are: hypertension
due to a diet high in salt; high blood cholesterol due to a diet high in saturated fat; being
overweight or obese due to excessive or indiscriminate eating behaviour; and Type 2
diabetes developed following weight gain. The development of such risk factors may be
unavoidable, but with medical management they may be influenced positively.
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In the following case study, where you are introduced to Winifred Fowler, you will start to
investigate how an individual may consider their lifestyle in relation to their cardiovascular
disease risk.
Case study 1: Winifred Fowler
Winifred Fowler is a bus driver in Norwich. She is 61 and will be retiring soon. Winifred
is counting the years to finishing work, but with one of her children at college, the family
still needs her income. She recently had a medical examination, arranged by her
employer, and was found to have high blood pressure. Winifred smokes at least 20
cigarettes a day, spends most of her time sitting down and snacks on chocolate and
sweets. She has to keep to a tight bus schedule, working the 2 to 8 p.m. shift, so lunch
is often a takeaway bacon roll or a portion of chips with plenty of salt from the café on
the way to her bus depot.
Activity 4: Risk factors and simple ways of changing them
0 15
Make a list of the modifiable risk factors that Winifred could change to improve her
overall health and reduce her risk of cardiovascular diseases. For each one that you
have listed, write a sentence identifying at least one way in which she could change.
You should have been able to identify at least a few modifiable risk factors that
Winifred could work towards changing. These might have included: reducing or giving
up smoking; reducing or replacing her snacks with healthy options; improving her
general diet; reducing her salt intake; and taking up exercise to counteract the amount
of time she sits during her working day.
3.2 Diabetes as a risk factor
One risk factor – diabetes – requires special attention with regard to cardiovascular
diseases. Diabetes mellitus is a condition in which the blood glucose level is higher than
it should be for a healthy individual. If it remains that way, over time, it will cause
numerous medical problems, including cardiovascular diseases. Cardiovascular diseases
are responsible for up to four-fifths of the deaths of people with diabetes. The risk factors
you are becoming familiar with are greater for people with diabetes; they have a two- to
three-fold increased risk of atherosclerosis and a three- to five-fold increased risk of heart
failure. As well as a doubling of cardiovascular disease risk, the risk of death from
coronary heart disease for people with diabetes is two to four times higher than average.
The word ‘diabetes’ comes from the Greek for ‘siphon’. A siphon removes liquid, and
diabetes is used to describe disorders that remove liquid from the body, as the ‘external’
symptoms include excessive thirst and the production of large amounts of urine. The word
‘mellitus’ is Latin for ‘honeyed’. Diabetes mellitus, therefore, describes a condition that
produces ‘sweet urine’. This production of sweet urine occurs as the end result of a high
blood glucose level. Diabetes mellitus has been known for thousands of years, but it is
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3 Risk factors
rapidly increasing in occurrence in modern times. From now on, throughout the course,
the term diabetes will be used to describe diabetes mellitus.
There are several types of diabetes, but we are only interested in the two most common:
Type 1 and Type 2. Worldwide, about 90 per cent of people with diabetes have Type 2
and about 10 per cent have Type 1. Type 2 diabetes was previously called non-insulindependent diabetes. People with Type 2 diabetes produce insulin (unlike Type 1), but it
may be in insufficient amounts and/or their cells may be resistant to the action of insulin
(insulin resistance). Because insulin directs glucose into cells from the bloodstream,
glucose will be left to build up in the blood if there is not enough insulin or if cells are
resistant to its actions. In people without diabetes, blood glucose levels are kept tightly
controlled. Type 2 diabetes may be present for many years before a clinical diagnosis is
made. This is because some people may have few obvious symptoms, and others do not
see their thirst or getting up at night to pass urine as a problem. Having diabetes for
several years before a diagnosis is made can mean that complications of diabetes,
including cardiovascular diseases that take years to develop, may therefore already be
present at the time of diagnosis. Obesity and lack of exercise are two particularly
important environmental factors thought to be contributing to the rapidly increasing
numbers of people worldwide with Type 2 diabetes. Although it has previously been
considered to be a condition of adults, particularly those over 40 years old, it is now
occurring with increasing frequency in younger people, including adolescents.
This section has introduced you to the concept of risk factors and the possibility that they
can be altered through either lifestyle modification or medical intervention.
3.2.1 Fats
Fats, also known as lipids, are important components of living tissues, and are used by
the body for making cell membranes and for storing energy. Fats come in a variety of
different biochemical types, which may be obtained from the diet or can be synthesised
within the body. Many cells of the body can convert certain types of fat into others, but by
preference, fats will be obtained from the diet, if available. The fatty acids that cannot be
synthesised by the body and therefore must be obtained from the diet are called essential
fatty acids. To understand the different types of fat (see Figure 8), and how the body can
make use of them, you need to know about the building blocks from which they are made.
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Figure 8 The chemical structures of fats (lipids). (a) Many fats are formed by three fatty
acids linked together by a molecule of glycerol. Each of the fatty acids has a long tail (acyl
groups), so this compound is called a triacylglycerol (often called a triglyceride). The
length of the acyl groups can vary, as can their chemical type. (b) Monounsaturated fats
have a particular chemical bond which produces a kink in the acyl groups. (c)
Polyunsaturated fats have a number of kinks, which vary in number and position. (d)
The lipids present in cell membranes are usually diacylglycerols, in which one of the
fatty acids is substituted with a completely different type of molecule – generically called a
‘head group’. (e) Cholesterol is not a fat, but its structure is functionally similar to the fatty
acids, so it can sit in cell membranes in a similar way to them. The liver can synthesise
cholesterol, but in practice most is derived from the diet.
Many fats are formed by three fatty acids linked together by a molecule of glycerol. Each
of the fatty acids has a long tail (acyl groups), so this compound is called a
triacylglycerol (often called a triglyceride). The length of the acyl groups can vary, as can
their chemical type (see Figure 8(a)). Monounsaturated fats have a particular chemical
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4 Prevention is better than cure
bond which produces a kink in the acyl groups (see Figure 8(c)). Polyunsaturated fats
have a number of kinks, which vary in number and position (see Figure 8(c)). The lipids
present in cell membranes are usually diacylglycerols, in which one of the fatty acids is
substituted with a completely different type of molecule – generically called a ‘head group’
(see Figure 8(d)). Cholesterol is not a fat, but its structure is functionally similar to the
fatty acids, so it can sit in cell membranes in a similar way to them. The liver can
synthesise cholesterol, but in practice most is derived from the diet (see Figure 8(e)).
Fatty acids can be classified as saturated or unsaturated, depending on their chemical
structure. Generally, complex fats that include unsaturated fatty acids are more fluid than
those containing saturated fatty acids, because their tails do not pack together so neatly.
However, in one group of unsaturated fatty acids, trans fatty acids, the kink(s) which are
present in more abundant unsaturated fats are minimal. So, like saturated fats, the
compounds formed from them also have lower fluidity. The precise position(s) of the
special chemical bond(s) which produce the kinks in an unsaturated fatty acid is indicated
by its biochemical nomenclature, e.g. omega-3 fatty acids. The pattern of kinks is also
fundamental to the kinds of more complicated molecules that can be built from fatty acids.
Fatty acids and cholesterol are transported around the body in the blood or the lymph
(clear fluid that bathes tissues), in association with specific types of proteins that link them
together and prevent them from sticking to other molecules. Some are just attached to a
protein in the blood called albumin, but larger and more complex combinations of lipids
and protein are called lipoproteins. Different types of lipoprotein are classified according
to their density, which reflects their lipid and protein composition. They may be highdensity lipoproteins (HDL), low-density lipoproteins (LDL) or very low-density lipoproteins
(VLDL). Fat is less dense than protein, so, as an example, LDL has a higher proportion of
cholesterol and saturated fatty acids than HDL. Dietary fats are transported in the blood to
the liver as the very large lipoproteins called chylomicrons. Those that reach the liver are
processed and may be converted to other fatty acids before the blood carries them on to
other tissues. The liver also acts as a way-station (store) for fats from the tissues that are
to be used as a source of energy or for synthesising cell membranes.
4 Prevention is better than cure
4.1 Introduction
Prevention strategies for cardiovascular diseases are often referred to as primary or
secondary. This distinction is made because recommendations for the patient are slightly
different, depending on whether cardiovascular diseases have already been established.
Primary prevention involves preventing the onset of disease in individuals without
symptoms. Secondary prevention refers to the prevention (or delay) of death or
recurrence of disease in those with symptoms.
For all coronary heart disease patients who die within a month of the onset of symptoms,
about three more have died before even reaching hospital. This emphasises the need to
recognise the warning signs and work on prevention of the causes of cardiovascular
diseases. The health problems caused by cardiovascular diseases worldwide have led to
a great deal of research into both causes and treatment. (The scale and depth of the
research can be demonstrated by searching various resources on the internet, such as
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PubMed (National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2007).) There is now better
evidence to guide the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of coronary heart disease than
there is for most other major diseases, and in the UK this has led to the development of
guidelines for the health service.
4.2 The National Service Framework
National Service Frameworks are long-term strategies for tackling major health issues
and important diseases, especially improving specific areas of care, e.g. coronary heart
disease, cancer and diabetes. They set measurable goals within set timeframes. The
National Service Framework for coronary heart disease in England, published in
March 2000 (Department of Health, 2000), sets out a strategy to modernise coronary
heart disease services over 10 years. It details 12 standards (see Table 3) for improved
prevention, diagnosis and treatment, for rehabilitation goals, and to secure fair access to
high-quality services.
Table 3 The 12 standards that make up the National Service Framework
for coronary heart disease in England (NHS, National Health Service)
Target
Standard
Description
Reducing heart disease in
the population
1
The NHS and partner agencies should develop,
implement and monitor policies that reduce the
prevalence of coronary risk factors in the population,
and reduce inequalities in risks of developing heart
disease.
2
The NHS and partner agencies should contribute to a
reduction in the prevalence of smoking in the local
population.
3
General practitioners and primary care teams should
identify all people with established cardiovascular
disease and offer them comprehensive advice and
appropriate treatment to reduce their risks.
4
General practitioners and primary health care teams
should identify all people at significant risk of
cardiovascular disease but who have not developed
symptoms and offer them appropriate advice and
treatment to reduce their risks.
5
People with symptoms of a possible heart attack
should receive help from an individual equipped with
and appropriately trained in the use of a defibrillator
within 8 minutes of calling for help, to maximise the
benefits of resuscitation should it be necessary.
6
People thought to be suffering from a heart attack
should be assessed professionally and, if indicated,
receive aspirin. Thrombolysis should be given within
60 minutes of calling for professional help.
7
NHS Trusts should put in place agreed protocols/
systems of care so that people admitted to hospital
with proven heart attack are appropriately assessed
and offered treatments of proven clinical and costeffectiveness to reduce their risk of disability and
death.
Preventing CHD in highrisk patients
Heart attack and other
acute coronary syndromes
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Stable angina
8
People with symptoms of angina or suspected
angina should receive appropriate investigation and
treatment to relieve their pain and reduce their risk of
coronary events.
Revascularisation
9
People with angina that is increasing in frequency or
severity should be referred to a cardiologist urgently
or, for those at greatest risk, as an emergency.
10
NHS Trusts should put in place hospital-wide
systems of care so that patients with suspected or
confirmed coronary heart disease receive timely and
appropriate investigation and treatment to relieve
their symptoms and reduce their risk of subsequent
coronary events.
Heart failure
11
Doctors should arrange for people with suspected
heart failure to be offered appropriate investigations
(e.g. electrocardiography, echocardiography) that will
confirm or refute the diagnosis. For those in whom
heart failure is confirmed, its cause should be
identified – treatments most likely to both relieve their
symptoms and reduce their risk of death should be
offered.
Cardiac rehabilitation
12
NHS Trusts should put in place agreed protocols/
systems of care so that, prior to leaving hospital,
people admitted to hospital suffering from coronary
heart disease have been invited to participate in a
multidisciplinary programme of secondary prevention
and cardiac rehabilitation. The aim of the programme
will be to reduce their risk of subsequent cardiac
problems and to promote their return to a full and
normal life.
The 2006 progress report for England states that:
We continue to make good progress towards our Public Service Agreement
mortality target for cardiovascular disease (CVD) with a 35.9% reduction,
against a target of 40% by 2010.
(Department of Health, 2007)
A similar framework was published for Wales in July 2001 (The National Assembly for
Wales, 2001) and outlined five standards. Other countries worldwide are likely to have or
be developing their equivalent National Service Framework for coronary heart disease
and other cardiovascular diseases and be at various stages of implementation.
In Section 1.5 the substantial economic costs of cardiovascular diseases were introduced.
Box 3 reports the success of physicians in the USA in lowering the national average blood
pressure values to slightly below those in some Western European countries. They have
achieved this with more interventions and drug treatment. This presumably also has
higher cost implications, at least initially – as is currently being experienced with the
National Service Framework for coronary heart disease in England. The obvious question
that follows is to ask whether prevention would be cheaper than intervention. If so, how
can it be done at different levels: globally, nationally, individually? In Sections 4.3, 4.4 and
4.5 we will start to consider some of these issues.
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Box 3: Keeping the blood pressure of nations under control
A recent study reveals that people living in the USA have lower blood pressure than some
of their Western European counterparts (in the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy;
Wang et al., 2007).
US doctors administer hypertension treatment earlier and more aggressively than doctors
in Western Europe. By doing this, they say they can reduce the cost of health care for
patients by decreasing their chances of developing cardiovascular diseases (mainly MIs
and strokes).
The US patients in this study had an average blood pressure slightly lower than the
combined blood pressure average of Western Europeans. Of the 21 000 US patients with
hypertension, 63 per cent had their blood pressure under control and met the
recommended blood pressure target of 140/90 mmHg. This was a significantly larger
percentage than the other countries featured in the study. Furthermore, 32 per cent of US
patients with inadequately controlled hypertension received increased doses of medication,
compared with only 14 to 26 per cent of Western European patients.
4.3 Education, education, education
We have already listed some of the main modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and
excessive alcohol consumption.
SAQ 1.2
Question: Try to recall two other major modifiable risk factors.
Answer
The risk factors could be diet (unhealthy or unbalanced) and inactivity. Look back at
Table 2 for a full list.
There are current awareness campaigns in mainly developed countries, originating from
many quarters, ranging from the government to health charities as well as via celebrity
chefs, which try to improve the food that children and young people eat. In parallel, there
are efforts to engage younger people in more physical activity. Both of these initiatives aim
to avoid future health problems, whether they are cardiovascular and/or related to obesity.
Both help practically by improving current health and by educating children to opt for
healthier diets and lifestyles as they grow.
4.4 Obesity and cardiovascular diseases
Obesity and being overweight are well-known as risk factors for cardiovascular diseases.
Carrying excess body fat predisposes individuals to developing elevated blood
cholesterol and diabetes. You will begin to appreciate that many of the modifiable risk
factors for cardiovascular diseases are interlinked. This means that influencing one, such
as reducing the amount of stored lipids in the body, may have a positive effect in reducing
the risk associated with high blood cholesterol levels and hypertension.
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Obesity is an issue that increasingly needs to be addressed in developing countries, as
well as in the developed or ‘Westernised’ world. Type 2 diabetes used to be described as
a mainly adult disease, but that is changing as the incidence of obesity is increasing in
young people, including children (see Figure 9 for England). This trend extends across the
globe – even in countries such as Thailand and China, home to traditionally slender
people. While awareness of the problem is growing, there is very limited guidance on what
can be done to reverse or stem the problem.
Figure 9 The increase in obesity in children in England between 1995 and 2005
4.4.1 Measures of adiposity
The amount of lipid stored within the body – an individual's adiposity – can be indirectly
measured. Body shape (e.g. ‘apple’ or ‘pear’ shapes), waist-to-hip ratio, waist
circumference and body mass index (BMI) are all used to classify obesity and being
overweight, although BMI is the most common. Everyone should aim to have a body
weight within the normal range for their height. Slightly different ranges apply between
populations due to different body shapes. It is worth noting that there is increasing
scientific evidence that excess abdominal adiposity may be more associated with
cardiovascular disease risk than the general degree of adiposity throughout the body
(Iacobellis and Sharma, 2007). Thus where the lipid is stored within the body may have
more bearing on cardiovascular disease risk than how much lipid is stored. Some
scientists and clinicians are now suggesting that the waist-to-hip ratio or the waist
circumference should be used in conjunction with BMI when considering cardiovascular
disease risk factors.
In general, people who are overweight need to reduce their calorie intake in a balanced
way and to increase the amount of exercise that they take in order to burn up calories.
Moderate physical activity is generally considered to be 30 minutes of activity per day,
e.g. taking a brisk walk. Exercise in itself improves blood glucose control, even when no
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4 Prevention is better than cure
weight changes are occurring, so it is equally important for people who are not overweight
to take regular moderate exercise to maintain cardiovascular health.
4.5 What can individuals do?
Whatever age they are, men, women and children can all do something to try to prevent
future cardiovascular diseases in themselves or their families by eating a balanced diet
(see Section 4.6), taking more exercise and modifying their lifestyles to reduce any other
known risk factors. If cardiovascular diseases are pre-existing, there are still numerous
areas in which improvements can be made.
In most people, hypertension is not associated with any symptoms, although a small
proportion of patients will experience symptoms such as headaches, blurry vision, or
shortness of breath. The only way to be sure that your blood pressure is within normal
limits is to have it regularly measured by your doctor or nurse. In between visits to your
health care provider, you can also monitor your blood pressure at home with a calibrated
sphygmomanometer. At the same time, everyone can help to prevent themselves from
developing hypertension by eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of physical activity or
exercise.
4.6 A balanced diet
Our diet is simply what we eat and drink. Diet does not mean that we are trying to lose
weight, although sometimes this is necessary. What we eat is very important, particularly
in people with diabetes (as you found out in Section 3). Our wellbeing is influenced by
whether or not we eat a balanced diet. A balanced diet is one in which all the food groups
are eaten in the quantities and proportions required by an individual to maintain health
and normal body weight, given their level of activity. A low-fat diet and a good source of
antioxidants are often recommended for individuals with cardiovascular diseases. It is
advised that all people with cardiovascular diseases should see a dietician to discuss their
dietary needs. The recommended balanced diet should be based on the principles of a
healthy diet that anyone could eat.
4.7 Special circumstances?
Individuals can only attempt to alter risk factors they are aware of and need to be informed
about what is relevant to them. Women and men have different considerations, and ethnic
background can also have an influence on susceptibility to cardiovascular diseases. Such
considerations require improved awareness based on reliable knowledge from scientific
studies (see Box 4 on B vitamins). Women have extra protection from cardiovascular
diseases during their reproductive years, due to their higher concentrations of the
hormone oestrogen. (A hormone is a chemical messenger that travels via the blood.)
However, this ‘protection’ may give women and their doctors less reason to suspect
cardiovascular diseases and their gradual development may go unnoticed. Cardiovascular diseases remain the main cause of death in women in all European countries
(Petersen et al., 2006), the USA (American Heart Association, 2006) and in many other
countries. Even simply the awareness of cardiovascular disease risk has been found to be
lower in black and Hispanic women compared with white women (around 30 per cent,
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5 Early warning signs
compared with nearly 70 per cent) with more than 50 per cent of all respondents (average
age of 50) confused about how to embark on cardiovascular disease prevention
strategies (Christian et al., 2007).
Box 4: To supplement with B vitamins or not to supplement with B
vitamins?
Some women take antioxidant dietary supplements because initial studies suggested they
would lower the risk of developing a serious cardiovascular disease. A large medical study
– the Women's Antioxidant and Cardiovascular Study (WACS) – is underway in the USA
and it is designed to investigate whether the vitamins B6, B12, C and E, folic acid and betacarotene reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease episodes specifically in women. The
researchers have recruited nearly 5500 female health professionals throughout the country
who are over 40 years old and have either an existing cardiovascular disease or a minimum
of three cardiovascular disease risk factors. Seven years into the study, the investigators
have found no differences between women receiving supplements and women taking a
placebo (a ‘dummy pill’ with no active ingredient) in terms of the cardiovascular disease
events that had been experienced during that time period: 15% for both groups. This study
is the fourth large investigation that has found no benefit of taking B vitamins and folic acid
to specifically avoid cardiovascular diseases in women and their use is not now
recommended for this purpose alone.
Ethnicity is important in terms of health care because patterns of cardiovascular disease
risk factors vary by ethnic group. In some situations, this is also complicated by
socioeconomic status. In some cases, moving to live in different countries – from rural
China to urban USA, for example – dramatically alters disease and cardiovascular
disease risk. In contrast, South Asian people from the Indian subcontinent or East Africa
have higher incidences of coronary heart disease regardless of whether or not they are
indigenous to the area (Lip et al., 2007). African-American people have higher incidences
of stroke – but, somewhat surprisingly, lower rates of coronary artery disease – in families
with a number of members with diabetes (Freedman et al., 2005). These examples
highlight the need for further extensive studies on cardiovascular disease risk factors in
individuals from different ethnic backgrounds and localities.
5 Early warning signs
Many people are familiar with chest pain as an early warning sign of an impending heart
attack (see Figure 10). However, chest pain can also be a symptom of something
completely unrelated to cardiovascular diseases. As well as chest pain, there are other
equally important symptoms of cardiovascular diseases. The early warning signs that may
lead a doctor to refer a patient to a hospital cardiology centre (cardiology is the medical
study of the heart) include pain, weakness, fatigue, breathlessness, oedema (especially in
the ankles or legs) and arrhythmia.
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Figure 10 Graphic advertising campaigns are used to try to get the important messages
about cardiovascular diseases across to the general public. In the UK, 999 is the main
telephone number for contacting the emergency services; the EU standard 112 can also
be used
Activity 5: Finding out about chest pain and its causes
0 25
Read the article ‘Chest Pain’ by Cohn and Cohn (2002).
Create a list of all the causes of chest pain that are mentioned in this article. Add any
others that you may be aware of. Highlight all the terms you are not familiar with and
then look them up in the course glossary.
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Some symptoms are common to several cardiovascular diseases – these include
developing hypertension and early atherosclerosis which may not result in any early or
obvious signs. While we are mainly concerned with the blood vessels supplying the heart
in this course, atherosclerosis can develop in almost all major arteries, leading to the
formation of blood clots, the whole process being called atherothrombosis. In the brain,
this can lead to strokes, and in the arms and legs it is known as peripheral arterial
disease.
Cholesterol is an important component of cell membranes, and although the body can
make its own, much of our cholesterol is obtained from the modern diet. A high cholesterol
level in the blood is a major risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis and
eventually coronary heart disease. Two types of cholesterol measurements are routinely
taken: LDL and HDL (refer back to Section 3.2.1). You may come across these described
in the popular media as ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol and ‘good’ (HDL) cholesterol. Too much
LDL cholesterol or too little HDL cholesterol are warning signs for developing
cardiovascular diseases – see Table 4 for the reference levels of cholesterol in the blood.
(The limits vary slightly between countries.)
Table 4 Reference levels of cholesterol in the blood: figures from
the UK, Europe and USA (<, less than; >, more than)
Type
UK(mmol/l)
Europe(mmol/l)
USA(mmol/l)
Level
total cholesterol
<5.2
<5.0
<6.2 (240 mg/dl)
ideal
LDL cholesterol
HDL cholesterol
5.2 to 6.2
borderline
>6.2
high risk
<3.4
<3.0
<3.8(160 mg/dl)
ideal
3.4 to 4.1
borderline
4.2 to 4.8
high risk
>4.9
very high risk
>1.6
>1.0 (men)
>1.0
ideal
>1.2 (women)
<0.9
triglycerides (fasting)
<1.7
some risk
<1.7
<2.3 (200 mg/dl)
The unit ‘mmol/l’ (millimoles per litre) here refers to the amount of substance – counted
out as numbers of molecules or particles – in a given volume of blood. The unit ‘mg/dl’
(milligrams per decilitre) is used less frequently in this context and refers to the mass of
substance – commonly referred to as weight – in a given volume of blood.
It is worth pointing out here to avoid confusion that there is only one type of cholesterol,
but it can be transported by combining with proteins in a number of different ways, e.g. via
HDL, LDL and other lipoprotein complexes. In general practice, doctors can use the ratio
(fraction) of a patient's total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio (TC : HDL) and the
‘Sheffield table’ to estimate cardiovascular disease risk for primary prevention (Wallis
et al., 2000). Its use is not appropriate for secondary prevention – that is, in people with
established cardiovascular diseases such as MI and angina.
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6 When things go wrong
SAQ 1.3
Question: Which type of cholesterol-carrying lipoprotein complex contains
the most cholesterol and transports it around the body: LDL or HDL?
Answer
LDL carries more cholesterol. (Refer back to Section 3.2.1 if you weren't sure.)
6 When things go wrong
6.1 Introduction
Despite efforts to avoid them, heart disease, heart failure and heart attacks do occur –
sometimes with warning symptoms and sometimes without. Cardiologists (doctors
specialising in the heart) use a variety of tests to determine the causes of different
conditions leading to heart disease. They are then able to guide subsequent treatment.
Special tests that are carried out in cardiology departments may include blood pressure
measurements, blood tests, electrocardiography, angiography, echocardiography and
nuclear imaging.
Less than a century ago, little could be done to treat high blood pressure and other
cardiovascular diseases. Today, medical and surgical interventions are available to
reduce damage and disability as well as delay death. Once under the care of the
cardiologist in the hospital setting or discharged to the care of a family medical
practitioner, the cardiac patient will receive treatment according to established protocols.
Outside the medical setting, first aid for acute heart conditions can be life-saving and it is
useful for everyone to be aware of the current guidelines.
6.2 Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
The immediate treatment given when the heart stops beating is cardiopulmonary
resuscitation (CPR). (Pulmonary refers to the lungs.) Outside the hospital setting, first
aid is required in the first instance. It is important to keep the heart beating artificially by
CPR to circulate oxygenated blood to the brain, otherwise irreversible brain damage can
be caused within minutes.
The Red Cross, an international charity, publishes the commonly adopted first aid
guidelines and these have recently been revised (see Figure 11). These guidelines are set
by the International Liason Committee on Resuscitation (represented in the UK by the
Resuscitation Council UK). They do occasionally make adjustments to them, so it is
important to try to keep your knowledge current by visiting their website (British Red
Cross, 2007) or refreshing any first aid qualifications you have every few years.
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7 Immediate treatment of cardiovascular diseases
Figure 11 The current (2007) first aid guidelines recommended by the British Red Cross,
available from their website
7 Immediate treatment of cardiovascular
diseases
Treatment obviously depends on the severity of cardiovascular diseases at presentation
and any safety considerations. Medications (pharmaceutical drugs) are available to treat
many of the symptoms and slow the progression of cardiovascular diseases. Some are
used for specific purposes, whereas others are useful for a range of cardiovascular
diseases. In certain circumstances, individuals may not be able to take one type of
medication and will be prescribed something else to serve the same function. The type of
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7 Immediate treatment of cardiovascular diseases
treatment will certainly depend on where in the world the patient is taken ill, due to
availability and costs (see Figure 12).
Figure 12 The availability and/or affordability of antihypertensive medications in different
regions of the world (WHO data; Mackay and Mensah, 2004)
Immediate treatment following an MI is required to minimise further damage to the heart
cells and restore blood circulation. As soon as possible, drugs to prevent blood clotting
are administered, as long as there are no medical reasons contravening this. After further
assessment, other treatments may be required. Many effective surgical devices have
been developed to treat cardiovascular disease complications and are now in routine use,
including:
l
pacemakers (to artificially maintain the heart's rhythm)
l
implantable defibrillators (to restart the heart)
l
coronary angioplasty followed by placement of stents (to widen blocked vessels)
l
prosthetic heart valves (to replace faulty or diseased valves)
l
patches to mend holes or tears in the heart muscle.
Technological advances also mean that many of these procedures are being used and
further developed so that they involve only minor surgery, leading to safer outcomes for
patients. More invasive but often life-saving and life-enhancing operations that are also
carried out include coronary artery bypass and – as a last resort – artificial hearts and
heart transplantation. The development and use of such impressive surgical advances
reduce disability and death from cardiovascular disease complications and improve the
quality of life for patients, but they do incur higher health care costs.
Despite such encouraging advances in cardiovascular disease treatment options, there
are still substantial numbers of people worldwide who would benefit from treatment but
are not receiving it. Whereas 1 in 2 people with high blood pressure in the USA are
receiving treatment, only a quarter of those over 20 years old with blood cholesterol levels
of more than 6.2 mmol/l are on cholesterol-lowering drugs (Mackay and Mensah, 2004).
As you started to discover in Section 3, the quality of treatment received by people of
different ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds and even gender show marked
disparity. Research in these areas is ongoing, so if you are interested you can keep your
knowledge current with developments via the internet or publications.
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8 Long-term treatment, and living with cardiovascular diseases
8 Long-term treatment, and living with
cardiovascular diseases
8.1 Interventions
The longer-term medical treatment of patients with identified cardiovascular diseases or
significant cardiovascular disease risk factors could involve any or all of the following
interventions: monitoring; medical management of risk factors; the use of medications for
secondary prevention; and various stages of surgical management.
8.2 Secondary prevention using drugs
Extensive research has been carried out into the use of drugs to help limit damage and
minimise deterioration of an established heart or circulatory condition. The use of four
main drug categories together reduces the risk of an MI, a stroke or cardiovascular
disease death over the next two years by 75 per cent in patients with previous coronary
heart disease or stroke (2002 figures from Mackay and Mensah, 2004). Such secondary
prevention of cardiovascular diseases has been formalised into a set of recommendations
for doctors in the UK by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).
This is an independent organisation responsible for providing national guidance on
promoting good health and preventing and treating ill health in the population.
NICE produces guidance in three areas of health (public health, health technologies and
clinical practice) through centres of excellence. The Centre for Clinical Practice develops
the clinical guidelines or recommendations, based on the best available scientific
evidence, on the appropriate treatment and care of people with specific diseases and
conditions, such as hypertension, chronic heart failure and diabetes. To look at one in
more detail, read the following summary on the treatment of high blood pressure and then
work through the flowchart in Figure 13.
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8 Long-term treatment, and living with cardiovascular diseases
Figure 13 Clinical guidelines or recommendations by NICE, based on the best available
scientific evidence, on the appropriate treatment of individuals with hypertension
Click here to view larger PDF version of Figure 13
The NICE clinical guideline on hypertension (National Institute for Health and Clinical
Excellence, 2007) covers:
l
how doctors should find out whether someone has high blood pressure
l
how doctors should assess someone's risk of developing problems with their heart
or blood vessels, such as a heart attack or stroke
l
how lifestyle factors such as smoking, diet and exercise can affect blood pressure
l
the use of medicines to lower blood pressure
l
how high blood pressure should be monitored.
These recommendations apply to primary care – treatment by a GP or practice nurse.
They do not apply to hospital care. This guideline does not look at screening for
hypertension (routine checking of blood pressure in healthy people to detect early
disease), hypertension during pregnancy or the specialist management of secondary
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8 Long-term treatment, and living with cardiovascular diseases
hypertension (where the high blood pressure is happening because of another medical
problem).
8.3 Issues with medications
Most pharmaceutical drugs will have side effects – unwanted and sometimes unexpected
effects, in addition to the medical benefits expected with the drug's use. All prescription
drugs are accompanied by an information sheet outlining possible side effects. Such
unwanted effects can cause problems with patient compliance: despite being prescribed
certain drugs or drug combinations, patients will either not take their drugs or not take
them in accordance with the suggested schedule. Sometimes the lack of patient
compliance may simply be an issue of the patient forgetting to take their medication.
For [the cholesterol-lowering drug] simvastatin, the evidence is that marginally
better lowering of total and LDL cholesterol comes from taking the tablets in the
evening than in the morning.
However,
There is an inverse relationship between patient compliance and both number
of drugs and number of doses per day, and there can be further loss in
compliance when medication regimens are changed. What is really important is
that the patient takes the drug reliably, and if that is easier with morning dosing,
the extra 10 to 13% reduction in LDL-cholesterol potentially achieved with
evening dosing is probably worth foregoing. An evening dose is more easily
forgotten.
(Bandolier, 2005)
8.4 When surgery is required
For some cardiovascular disease patients, surgery may be carried out as an emergency
procedure or become an inevitable progression, following on from drug therapy. There are
various degrees of surgery carried out, ranging from the fairly routine and minorly invasive
procedure of coronary angioplasty to the major life-saving heart (or heart and lung)
transplant. While it is important to understand all of the detail of surgical procedures and
how the cardiac surgical team work together, it is also equally important to consider
surgery from the position of the cardiovascular disease patient.
For some individuals, simply having a blood sample taken is a stressful procedure, so the
psychological as well as the physiological effects of any minor or major surgical
procedures need to be considered. In addition, how a patient recovers and embraces the
required lifestyle management and complies with further ongoing drug therapy can be
influenced by psychosocial factors. Psychologists have found from studies of patients
recovering from MI that depressed patients were three times more likely to die within a
year than those who were not depressed, unrelated to the initial severity of their disease
(Frasure-Smith et al., 1999). The same authors published another study showing that
depressed patients who thought that they did not get enough support at home had the
highest death rates. From a more positive angle, researchers on the Recurrent Coronary
Prevention Project, which randomly allocated over 1000 MI patients to receive either
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9 Conclusion
routine medical care or the same care with additional counselling about risk factors or
group therapy with behaviour modification, found a 44 per cent reduction in the incidence
of second MIs in the latter group (Friedman, 1989).
By choice or default, physicians, nurses and allied health professionals are the
ones who need to take responsibility for systematically and effectively
addressing patients’ psychosocial needs… There aren't enough psychologists
who are trained in the ins and outs of life with cardiovascular illness. It's a huge
area of unmet need.
(Wayne Sotile, Wake Forest University Cardiac Rehabilitation Program; quoted
in Clay, 2001)
While this quotation is just an opinion, it nevertheless makes an important point. It
emphasises that health care professionals can provide support and advice on recovery
and coping skills that are beneficial to cardiovascular disease patients, in addition to
standard medical care.
Following successful surgery, it remains essential to control the symptoms and further
development of cardiovascular diseases.
8.5 How things change
Despite the advances made in cardiac care over the previous century, it is thought that the
global epidemic of cardiovascular diseases is both increasing (see Table 5) and shifting
from developed to developing countries (Mackay and Mensah, 2004). While treatments
are available for some cardiovascular disease patients, prevention must remain a priority
through the reduction of known risk factors. Whether or not people have already been
diagnosed with cardiovascular diseases, taking account of the risk factors and minimising
them where possible should result in positive changes and improved health in individuals
and their families.
Table 5 Predictions of global cardiovascular disease deaths in the early
twenty-first century
CVD/CHD deaths
2010
2020
2030
annual number of CVD deaths
18.1 million
20.5 million
24.2 million
CVD deaths as a percentage of all deaths
30.8%
31.5%
32.5%
CHD deaths as a percentage of all deaths of men
13.1%
14.3%
14.9%
CHD deaths as a percentage of all deaths of women
13.6%
13.0%
13.1%
9 Conclusion
Now you will be very familiar with cardiovascular diseases, their development and their
diagnosis. You will also know their treatment and many of the cardiovascular disease risk
factors – what they are and how they can be influenced positively to minimise
cardiovascular diseases. You will understand the overall importance of a balanced diet,
regular exercise and weight management (guided by adiposity measurements) through-
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10 Test your knowledge
out life, to maintain cardiac and vascular health. You will also be able to explain the
negative effect of behaviours such as smoking and drinking too much alcohol. You should
have an appreciation of the ‘bigger picture’ and see how all these factors combine to
influence our cardiovascular health that in itself will affect our relationships and our daily
lives, at home and at work.
10 Test your knowledge
Question 1
Referring to Figure 6 reproduced again for you below, state how many people per 10
000 of the North American population had heart attacks in (i) 1990; (ii) 1995; (iii) 2000.
Make sure that you are reading from the correct y-axis (labelled ‘heart attacks per 10
000 population’).
Figure 6 The numbers of heart attacks and surgical procedures (angioplasty and
coronary bypass) per 10 000 of the population in the USA between 1980 and 2005
(Swanton and Frost, 2007)
Answer
(i) 10; (ii) 8; (iii) 7.
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10 Test your knowledge
Question 2
Name two distinct areas of the body that may be affected by the deposit of fatty
plaques in the blood vessels.
Answer
Two of the following: heart or coronary arteries; blood vessels in brain; blood vessels in
periphery, e.g. arms, legs.
Question 3
What factors increase the risk of someone developing cardiovascular diseases?
Answer
Age (increasing); smoking; gender (being male); diet (unhealthy or unbalanced); family
history (genetic); inactivity (sedentary lifestyle); race/ethnicity; excess alcohol
consumption; high blood cholesterol; psychosocial factors, e.g. stress, depression and
anger; high blood pressure; diabetes (types 1 and 2); obesity and being overweight.
Question 4
Produce a table of risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (using your answers to
Question 3), separating them into three columns of modifiable (biological and lifestyle)
and non-modifiable (biological) risk factors. Explain your reasoning for which category
you have placed the risk factor diabetes.
Place a tick alongside any risk factors that you have identified as being relevant to
yourself or someone else you know. Suggest what measures you can take to positively
influence any modifiable risk factors.
Answer
Your table should look like Table 6 below.
Table 6 Risk factors for cardiovascular diseases
Biological risk factors:
non-modifiable
Biological risk factors: modifiable by
treatment or altered lifestyle
Lifestyle risk
factors: modifiable
age (increasing)
high blood cholesterol
smoking
male
high blood pressure (hypertension)
diet (unhealthy or
unbalanced)
family history (genetic)
overweight and obesity
inactivity (sedentary
lifestyle)
race/ethnicity
diabetes (Type 2)
excess alcohol
consumption
diabetes (Type 1)
psychosocial factors, e.g. stress,
depression, anger
There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 would be classed as a biological nonmodifiable risk factor, but Type 2 can be improved with appropriate management and
so is modifiable – especially if it has arisen as a result of lifestyle, developed following
weight gain.
Suggestions to positively influence modifiable risk factors could include:
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10 Test your knowledge
l
reducing or give up smoking and alcohol intake
l
improving diet by following healthy eating guidelines
l
becoming more active, e.g. by taking the stairs instead of the escalator or lift or
starting an exercise programme after a medical assessment
l
taking measures or obtaining advice on how to manage psychosocial factors.
Question 5
List three different causes of chest pain.
Answer
You could have mentioned any of the following: angina pectoris; ischaemia;
pericarditis; myocardial infarction; musculoskeletal problems; indigestion (acid reflux);
gallbladder disease; coronary artery disease.
Question 6
Distinguish between primary and secondary prevention strategies for developing
cardiovascular diseases. Suggest why this distinction is important in relation to
cardiovascular disease treatment.
Answer
Primary prevention strategies for developing cardiovascular diseases involve
preventing the onset of disease in individuals without symptoms. Secondary
prevention strategies refer to the prevention (or delay) of death or recurrence of
disease in individuals with pre-existing symptoms. This distinction is made because
recommendations are slightly different, depending on whether cardiovascular
diseases have already been established in the patient. For example, the ‘Sheffield
table’ to estimate cardiovascular disease risk is not appropriate for secondary
prevention, that is, in people with established cardiovascular diseases such as
myocardial infarction and angina.
Question 7
Explain why preventive measures (i.e. reduction of risk factors) are still required
following any surgical treatment for cardiovascular diseases.
Answer
Following successful surgery, it remains essential to control the symptoms and further
development of cardiovascular diseases by reducing the risk factors that contributed to
the development of disease in the first place. For instance, a diet high in saturated fat
would need to be modified.
Question 8
Explain why monitoring blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels are important in
the management of cardiovascular diseases.
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11 Additional resources
Answer
Hypertension and high blood cholesterol levels are early indicators, common to the
development of many cardiovascular diseases. Regular monitoring of blood pressure
and blood cholesterol levels is important so that medical interventions can take place
to keep the levels of both under control.
11 Additional resources
Bandolier (2005) Statins: when should you take the tablet?
British Red Cross (2007) First aid guidelines in the UK
Cardiac Risk in the Young (2003) When a young person dies suddenly
Clay, R. A. (2001) Research to the heart of the matter
Department of Health (2000) National Service Framework for coronary heart disease,
Chapter 4
Department of Health (2007) The coronary heart disease National Service Framework:
shaping the future: progress report 2006
The National Assembly for Wales (2001) Tackling coronary heart disease in Wales:
implementing through evidence
National Center for Biotechnology Information (2007) PubMed
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (2007) Hypertension: management of
hypertension in adults in primary care
World Health Organization (2006) World data tables
Please note that there is an error in Column 1 of the table. The population figure is actually
in thousands and not in the millions as stated. So, for example, Afghanistan has a
population of 23 million, rather than 23 billion.
Video resource
An ultrasound investigation of the heart
Now watch a video following an unltrasound investigation of the heart.
Video content is not available in this format.
Click to view clip about ultrasound [5 minutes 24 seconds]
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References
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References
American Heart Association (2006) ‘Heart disease and stroke statistics – 2006 update: A
report from the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics
Subcommittee’, Circulation, 113, pp. e85–e151.
Bandolier (2005) Statins: when should you take the tablet? (Accessed 9 March 2009).
British Red Cross (2007), First aid guidelines in the UK (Accessed April 2007; no longer
available).
Cardiac Risk in the Young (2003)"When a young person dies suddenlyAvailable from:
(Accessed 9 March 2009).
Christian, A. H., Rosamund, W., White, A. R. and Mosca, L. (2007) ‘Nine-year trends and
racial and ethnic disparities in women's awareness of heart disease and stroke: an
American Heart Association national study’, Journal of Women's Health, 16, pp. 68–81.
Clay, R. A. (2001), Research to the heart of the matter.
National Service Framework for coronary heart diseaseDepartment of Health (2000),
Chapter 4.
Department of Health (2007) The coronary heart disease National Service Framework:
shaping the future: progress report 2006 (Accessed 9 March 2009).
Evans, N. (2004) ‘Managing the cost of cardiovascular prevention in primary care’, Heart,
90, suppl. IV, pp. iv26–iv28.
Frasure-Smith, N., Lesperance, F., Juneau, M., Talajic, M. and Bourassa, M. G. (1999)
‘Gender, depression, and one-year prognosis after myocardial infarction’, Psychosomatic
Medicine, 61, pp. 26–37.
Freedman, B. I., Hsu, F. C., Langefeld, C. D., Rich, S. S., Herrington, D. M., Carr, J. J., Xu,
J., Bowden, D. W. and Wagenknecht, L. E. (2005) ‘The impact of ethnicity and sex on
subclinical cardiovascular disease: the Diabetes Heart Study’, Diabetologia, 48,
pp. 2511–2518.
Friedman, M. (1989), ‘Type A behavior: its diagnosis, cardiovascular relation and the
effect of its modification on recurrence of coronary artery disease’, American Journal of
Cardiology, 64 (6), pp. 12C–19C.
Iacobellis, G. and Sharma, A. M. (2007) ‘Obesity and the heart: redefinition of the
relationship’, Obesity Reviews, 8, pp. 35–39.
Lip, G. Y. H., Barnett, A. H., Bradbury, A., Cappuccio, F. P., Gill, P. S., Hughes, E., Imray,
C., Jolly, K. and Patel, K. (2007) ‘Ethnicity and cardiovascular disease prevention in the
United Kingdom: a practical approach to management’, Journal of Hypertension, 21,
pp. 183–211.
Mackay, J. and Mensah, G. (eds) (2004) The Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke, Geneva,
World Health Organization.
The National Assembly for Wales (2001)
Tackling coronary heart disease in Wales: implementing through evidence
National Center for Biotechnology Information (2007) PubMed, (Accessed 9 March 2009).
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Acknowledgements
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Hypertension: management of hypertension in adults in primary care.
Petersen, S., Peto, V., Rayner, M., Leal, J., Luengo-Fernandez, R. and Gray, A. (2006)
European cardiovascular disease statistics, London, British Heart Foundation.
Swanton, K. and Frost, M. (2007) Lightening the Load: Tackling Overweight and Obesity,
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Acknowledgements
The material acknowledged below is Proprietary and used under licence, not subject to
Creative Commons. See Terms and Conditions.
Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce
material in this course:
Course image: MattysFlicks in Flickr made available under
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Licence.
The content acknowledged below is Proprietary and is used under licence.
Figure 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 12 Based on Mackay, J. and Mensah, G. (2004) The Atlas of Heart
Disease and Stroke, The World Health Organisation.
Figure 2 The Stroke Association (2007) Know your blood pressure, The Stroke
Association.
Figure 6 Kahn, J. (2007) ‘Healing the heart’, National Geographic, 211 (2), February 2007.
Figure 9 Swanton, K. and Frost, M. (2007) Lightening the load, tackling overweight and
obesity, Department of Health. Crown copyright material is reproduced under Class
Licence Number C01W0000065 with the permission of the Controller of HMSO.
Figure 10 Reproduced with kind permission of the British Heart Foundation.
Figure 13 NICE Guidance notes, National Institute of Clinical Excellence.
Table 3 Department of Health (2006) Coronary heart disease: national service framework
for coronary heart disease – modern standards and service models: executive summary.
Crown copyright material is reproduced under Class Licence Number C01W0000065 with
the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen’s Printer for Scotland.
This extract is taken from S809 © The Open University
Chest Pain by Joan Kirschenbaum Cohn , DSW and Peter F Cohn, MD (2002).
Science Photo Library
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Acknowledgements
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